Oaths Affirmed
by Kazumi Muraki
Summary: Rangiku celebrates her first birthday without Gin. Set after Soul Society Arc. One-shot.


Oaths Affirmed

Oaths Affirmed

_They're shelling nuts together, huddled under a jutting rock for protection from the sun. The work is hard, the combination of sharp rocks and tough shells making a mess of their soft fingers. Rangiku's hands are bloody, but she works diligently, if clumsily._

"_Ran-chan?"_

"_Hm?"_

"_When's yer birthday?"_

"_I don't know. I don't have one."_

_Gin turns to her, his mouth quirked in a sharp line that says he's irritated. "Of course ya have one. Everyone has one."_

_She snaps, "Oh yeah? When's yours?"_

"_September 10__th__."_

_Frowning, she focuses on her task, slamming a chunk of rock against the nut. The nut pops away and she yanks her hand back, fresh blood shining along her palm. Gin tears a bit of his yukata, tying it around her hand. _

"_We'll make yer birthday the day ya met me."_

_Sniffling, Rangiku holds her hand to her chest. "Why would I want that?"_

"_Because," he says, and gives her a smile. "That's the day ya weren't alone anymore."_

The day is quiet. _Too _quiet. Rangiku sits at the window, staring at nothing at all. She's never been one for nervous habits, but her scarf is bunched and wrinkled from being wrapped around her hand over and over.

_He's not coming_.

The line repeats in her head, winding tighter and tighter inside her mind as the scarf winds tighter and tighter around her hand.

_He can't come. He's not here anymore_.

She doesn't walk past the Division Three building anymore. She refuses to have anything to do with the number three. It's ridiculous, she knows it, but suddenly it reminds her of him.

_Where are you going?_ _Far, far away._

There are three lilies in the vase on the table.

_Sorry_. She wants to be angry with him. She wants to slap him and tell him he's not sorry, he's never been sorry. That he's a liar. That today no longer has any meaning because he isn't with her anymore.

She is truly…

"Matsumoto."

Her name runs like a shock through water; she springs up, her fingers gripping the end of her scarf. Turning, she sees Hitsugaya standing behind her, his eyes averted. He's holding a wrapped bottle, clenching the neck as if to strangle it.

"Taicho! You scared me!"

"Sorry," he mumbles, then straightens. "Happy Birthday, Matsumoto." He holds out the bottle, and she turns it over.

"I didn't know what to get you, and…" He exhales. "This is what I thought of."

She holds the sake in dumb hands. "How'd you know? No one knows my birthday." _Except him_.

Hitsugaya rubs the back of his hair, a sign of anxiety she's seen him do for years. "I found a note on my desk about a week ago. It just had "Rangiku Matsumoto and September 29th" written on it, so I assumed it was your birthday."

She's still staring dumbfounded at him, so he adds, "I didn't tell anyone else. I figured that if you wanted them to know, you'd have been clamoring about it a month ago."

She laughs, because her other choice is crying. A week ago, Gin betrayed Soul Society and left with Aizen. But before that, he had made sure that she wouldn't be alone on her birthday.

"Come on then, Taicho! Let's have a celebratory drink!" She grabs two cups and unwraps the bottle.

Hitsugaya stares at her. "I don't…I don't think that's a good idea."

She gives him her best scolding pose. "You have to at least have one with me. Otherwise it's rude."

Hitsugaya takes the tiny cup she passes him and glares at it.

"Cheers!" She downs hers in one swallow, instantly warmed in body and soul. Hitsugaya is sipping suspiciously at his sake. "Taicho," she teases, "you drink sake like a little girl."

"Shut up," he snaps, finishing the cup at his own pace. She offers the bottle but he pulls his cup away. "Matsumoto…"

"I know," she says. "I'm fine. Go on."

He offers her a small, genuine smile. "Don't drink too much, Matsumoto."

She waves her hand dismissively. "I've got all day." Folding her arms across the table, she grins. "Thank you, Taicho."

He leaves as silently as he entered. Rangiku fills her cup and leans back in her chair. She flicks her fingers across her scarf as she sips her sake.

She's never celebrated a birthday without Gin. Even when weeks passed without contact, even when he left her without a word, he always came back for that day. Even today, he's come back to her in the only way he can.

The anger she's been trying to create is only sadness. She wonders, is he thinking of her now? She doesn't want to believe in the tragedy of his treason. Her shoulders are tingling; she imagines his arms are wrapped around them. She can still feel the weight of his head pressed against hers.

_Where are you trying to go_? She knows she'll never get an answer.

But somehow, she knows that no matter where he goes, he's never gone.

And she's never alone.


End file.
